26th Annual Conference and General Assembly Meeting, Sofia, Bulgaria

Mrs. Robinson has been a Chair of the Central Election Commission (CEC) since March 2014. Before that she was Executive Director of the Institute of Modern Politics – a non-profit organization, which works in the field of monitoring the legislation according to the principles of transparency, publicity, accountability and civil participation in decision making. She was an advisor to the Minister of Emergency Situations; a lawyer; a member of the CEC (2005). Her professional experience includes advising NGOs working in the field of human rights protection and good governance. Mrs. Robinson is an author of analyzes and proposals for new/ amendments of the electoral legislation. She participated in Civil Councils to the Parliament Committees for the preparation of the Election Code now in force; in round tables and discussions on electoral matters; in preparation of statements on conducting of the presidential elections 2011 for Constitutional Court cases and others. At present Mrs. Robinson is a President of the Association of European Election Officials (ACEEEO).

Michael Svetlik currently serves as Vice President of Programs for the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, providing policy and programming guidance to IFES' international operations that currently include electoral assistance and democratic institution building in over 30 countries. He is the IFES representative on the steering boards of both the ACE Project and BRIDGE partnerships, as well as participates in a variety of international fora to promote and support comparative best practices and international standards within the democracy support community. 

Areas of expertise include political change, institutional development, election system design, civic awareness and activism, and project management, evaluation and design. He has actively contributed to democracy and governance programming in Central and Eastern Europe, South Asia, the Middle East, Sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia. 

Svetlik previously served as Senior Director of Programs and Regional Director for Europe & Asia at IFES. He directed overseas IFES projects in both Georgia and Azerbaijan from 1998-2000. In 1998, Svetlik was awarded a U.S. Department of State Professional Development Fellowship to conduct research in Tbilisi, Georgia, at the Caucasus Institute for Peace, Democracy and Development. He was also a Senior Lecturer at the National School of Public Administration in Warsaw (1994-1995) and served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Poland from 1992-1994.

He holds a master’s degree in international relations from the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University and a bachelor’s degree in English and Italian from the University of Texas-Austin.

Zsolt Szolnoki currently serves as Secretary General for the Association of the European Election Officials on a voluntarily basis, providing leadership to the Secretariat’s work. He manages the annual conferences, supervises the projects’ preparations, the agendas for the Executive Board and the General Assembly meetings. His areas of expertise include planning for the elections, e-voting, election observations and supervisions, project management and design. He started to work for the ACEEEO in 1995, when he organized the annual conference in Siófok, Hungary. Since this year, he organized and attended all ACEEEO annual conference and Executive Board meeting. At the end of the nineties, he prepared several large observation missions to the Balkan region. In 2000, he worked for the OSCE Mission to Kosovo providing expertise for the preparatory work of the first election in Kosovo. He represented the ACEEEO as an international expert in many conferences and seminars. In his professional capacity between 1993 and 2002 he worked for the Hungarian National Election Office as the Deputy Head of the Election Department. From 2002 to 2005 he served as Head of IT department in the Ministry of Interior. From 2006 till November 2010 he worked for the European Commission as a Seconded National Expert on the area of Home Affairs.  In 2011 he was the Chairman of a working group in the Hungarian EU Presidency team. Currently he is a high counselor in the Ministry of Interior of Hungary. He holds a B.A in Public Administration and completed a post graduate course in Business Management.

Mrs. Robinson has been a Chair of the Central Election Commission (CEC) since March 2014. Before that she was Executive Director of the Institute of Modern Politics – a non-profit organization, which works in the field of monitoring the legislation according to the principles of transparency, publicity, accountability and civil participation in decision making. She was an advisor to the Minister of Emergency Situations; a lawyer; a member of the CEC (2005). Her professional experience includes advising NGOs working in the field of human rights protection and good governance. Mrs. Robinson is an author of analyzes and proposals for new/ amendments of the electoral legislation. She participated in Civil Councils to the Parliament Committees for the preparation of the Election Code now in force; in round tables and discussions on electoral matters; in preparation of statements on conducting of the presidential elections 2011 for Constitutional Court cases and others. At present Mrs. Robinson is a President of the Association of European Election Officials (ACEEEO).

Mihail Konstantinov is professor in Mathematics with the University of Architecture, Civil Engineering and Geodesy, Sofia, Bulgaria and member of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences and Arts. He is author and co-author of 600 scientific works including 30 books which are cited more than 2000 times. His scientific interests include Differential Equations, Control Theory, Computational Methods and Voting Theory. For 20 years he has served as member and Vice-President of the Central Election Commission of Bulgaria. Now he is Chairman of the Board of Directors of Information Services JSC, which is responsible for processing the voting results in Bulgaria since 2001.

Ana Rusu, currently serves as Senior Election Adviser with the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights. Lawyer by background, she occupied since 2003 several positions with the Council of Europe including lawyer to the Groupe of States against Corruption (GRECO), programme manager for the development of a School of Magistrates in Georgia (2004 - 2005), Co-secretary of the Consultative Council of European Prosecutors and Secretary of the Lisbon Network in Strasbourg (2006 - 2009), referendaire to the European Social Charter (2009 – 2010) and programme manager for electoral assistance in the countries of Eastern and South Eastern Europe (2012 - 2017). On behalf of ICON INSTITUTE (Germany) she was also involved in consultancy activities in Kazakhstan in the field of judiciary reform and in Uzbekistan in the field of parliamentary democracy (2010 - 2012).

Rusu holds a master degree in law from the State University of Moldova as well as a university diploma for administrator of elections from the University Paris 1 – Pantheon Sorbonne. She is fluent in French, Romanian, Russian and English. 

Simon-Pierre Nanitelamio is the Deputy Director of the Electoral Assistance Division (EAD) of the United Nations Department of Political Affairs (DPA). With more than 23 years of field experience, he is an expert in international electoral assistance with a strong background in election programmes management, electoral needs assessment, programme formulation, strategic and operational planning.

Prior to his appointment in New York as the Deputy Director of EAD in February 2017, Simon-Pierre Nanitelamio was EAD’s Principal Electoral Affairs Officer at the United Nations Office to the African Union (UNOAU) in Addis Ababa for 2 years (February 2015 – January 2017), where he provided senior level electoral expertise to DPA/UNOAU and the entire UN system, including undertaking electoral prevention initiatives, throughout the African continent.

Prior to joining EAD/DPA, Mr. Nanitelamio has worked across the United Nations System (from peace operations to UNDP/development settings) at senior level in such places as Madagascar, Cameroon, East Timor, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cambodia, Mozambique, Chad, Malawi. Guinea-Bissau, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, São Tomé and Principe, Central African Republic, Angola, etc. He has led an electoral advisory mission to Comoros (April-May 2016), an electoral pre-assessment mission to Somalia (July 2015) and several electoral needs assessment missions: Central African Republic (October 2016), Madagascar (March-April 2016), Zimbabwe (May-June 2015), Guinea-Conakry (April 2015), Benin (February 2015 and September 2015), Comoros (August 2014), Burkina Faso (February 2012), Chad (2000). He has also participated as NAM team member in various others (Côte d’Ivoire, 2014 and 2000), Madagascar (April 2012), Cameroon (2011), Benin (2010), etc.Simon-Pierre NANITELAMIO is graduated in political science, in history, in diplomacy and management of international organizations from the Universities of Paris I-La Sorbonne, Paris XI-Sceaux and Paris VII-Jussieu, in France. He is fluent in French, Portuguese and English.

Rositsa Borisova Mateva has been a member of the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Bulgaria since the month of March 2014.

Ms. Mateva is a lawyer by education. She holds a “Master” degree in Law from Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski obtained in 1991. In 1992 she was a trainee – judge in the Regional Court Pleven. Practices in the field of civil, and in particular law, employment and labor law, in the field of commercial and administrative law, by providing legal protection and assistance to legal and natural persons before civil and administrative courts in all judicial bodies; of legal persons before the arbitral tribunals.

She was a member of a Labor Legislation Committee to the National Council for Trilateral Cooperation during the period 2010 – 2014. She is an arbitrator in the National Council for Conciliation and Arbitration.  

She was a member of a Polling Section of Election Commission and an observer of the election process in the nineties. From 2005 to 2009 she was a member of the Regional Election Commission in Sofia for the following elections: Parliamentary elections 2005; Elections for President and Vice President 2006; Elections for European Parliament 2007; Parliamentary Elections 2009;

As a member of the Central Election Commission she was a Manager of a working group for “Complaints and Alerts” and at the moment of the Group for “Explanatory and Pre-Election Campaign”. As a member of the CEC, she participated in Finland in June 2014 in the 11th European CEC Conference, co-organized by the Venice Commission, the Ministry of Justice, the Parliament and the Court of Auditors of Finland; as an observer of the Presidential Elections in the Republic of Croatia – December 2014; in the Dominican Republic at the 2nd General Assembly of A-WEB, held in August 2015; in February 2016 in Georgia at the 6th meeting of the organizations for management of the conduct of elections and conference “Money and Policy” organized jointly with the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe  (OSCE)/Office for  Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR); in June 2016 in Manchester, Great Britain – observation over the referendum for the membership of Great Britain in the European Union by invitation of the British Central Election Commission; during the month of May 2017 in Saint Petersburg, Russia at the 14th European Conference of Electoral Management Bodies, organized by the Venice Commission; during the month of August 2017 in Bucharest, Romania – at the 3rd General Assembly of A-WEB.

Mr. Abu Fares is currently president of the Executive Office of the Arab Organization for Election Management Bodies, and member of the Board of Commissioners of the Independent Election Commission of Jordan. He is also author of four books in politics, health education and the environment.

He was president of the Jordan Medical Association, and chairman of the Board of the Professional Associations in Jordan. Mr. Abu Fares was also Deputy Secretary General of the Union of Arab Physicians.

Mr. Abu Fares is vice-President of the Arab– Euro Mediterranean Forum for Medical Associations, and member of the Jordanian Authors Association and of the Arab Authors Union

Yordanka Gancheva has been a member of the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Bulgaria since March 2014. She was born on 9-th of May 1980 in Varna and is a lawyer by education. She is a Manager of a working group for the organization and conduct of the elections abroad. She was a member of the Municipal Election Commission-Varna, a member of a District Election Commission- Varna for the induction of the national referendum in 2012. She has been repeatedly a member of Polling Station of Election Commission. Previously, she was a legal advisor to private companies and government organizations. In 2015 she participated in a 5-day training course at the International Centre for Parliamentary Studies – ICPS, London in the field of the election reform. In 2016, she obtained a CMI level 7 certificate for Strategic Management and Leadership at the Chartered Management Institute. She was an observer in the presidential elections in the Republic of Croatia in 2014, the regional elections in France in 2015, an observer of Britain's referendum on state membership in the European Union, an observer in local elections in Georgia. She has participated in various conferences, seminars, and roundtables on elections.

Arnis Cimdars is Chairman of the Central Election Commission of Latvia since December 1997, member of the CEC since January 1997. Over the last 19 years Mr. Cimdars has managed and administrated six parliamentary elections, five local government elections, three European Parliament elections and several referenda, observed various types of election in around 20 countries, actively participated in numerous international conferences and seminars as participant, moderator and speaker. Mr. Cimdars has also contributed as lecturer, consultant and expert in the fields of voter registration, voter education, election commission training, election observation and IT solutions for elections. He has worked as the election expert of the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe several times. He is the Executive Board Member of the ACEEEO since 2000, former President of the ACEEEO from 2005 to 2007. In 2014 Arnis Cimdars received the highest award in the Republic of Latvia for special merits to the country – The Order of the Three Stars.

Ms. Yarmoshyna was born in Slutsk, Minsk Voblast on 29 January 1953. In 1975, she graduated from the Faculty of Law at the Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University. Beginning in 1975, she worked as a legal advisor until becoming an attorney's assistant in 1987. She became Chairwoman of the Judiciary of the City Executive Committee of Babruysk in 1988, a post she held until 1996. She has been a member of the Central Election Commission of Belarus since 1992, and Chairwoman of organization since 1996.

Ingrid Bicu is currently serving as the Director of the Communication and International Affairs Department within the Permanent Electoral Authority of Romania. Previous affiliations include the Romanian National Intelligence Academy and the Open Source Centre. She has an extensive experience in the digital field as she has been working more than ten years as an open source analyst. Ms. Bicu has also contributed as lecturer and expert in the fields of knowledge management, competitive intelligence, collaborative IT solutions.

Dr. Suad Arnautović, has been a Member of the BiH Central Election Commission since June 2004. Following the initial seven-year term of office, he was re-appointed on 22 September 2011. From January 2008 to May 2009, Mr Arnautović was the President of the BiH Central Election Commission. Mr Arnautović participated in many international science and technical symposia and seminars on elections and electoral processes, as well as in election observer missions around the globe. He also attended a number of international science and professional conferences on political party funding, political integrity and electoral processes in Egypt, Serbia, Moldova, Kyrgyzstan, France and the United Kingdom. He is a Member of the Association of Election Officials in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Political Science Association of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and IPSA (International Political Science Association). Mr Arnautović completed the 2007 training for international short-term election observers (STO) organised by the OSCE/ODIHR at the OSCE Academy in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. He published over twenty scientific and professional papers in different BiH and foreign journals and authored a number of articles, reviews and commentaries in daily and weekly print media.

Ms. Natia Zaalishvili is presently the Director of the Centre for Electoral Systems Development, Reforms and Trainings in Georgia. She is a lawyer by profession and has extensive experience in both the private and public sectors respectively. In the private sector, Natia worked as Senior Lawyer of the Anti-money laundering department of the United Georgian Bank. Her career in the Public Service started in 2006 at the Parliament of Georgia as Leading Specialist of the Committee of Regional Policy and Self-Government. She was then appointed as Senior Consultant to the Legislative and Legal Expertise Division in Office of the Parliamentary Secretary of the President of Georgia. In 2007, Natia became the Deputy-Head of Office of the Parliamentary Secretary of the President of Georgia and held the latter position until 2010 when she decided to move to the then newly created Centre for Electoral Systems Development, Reforms and Trainings. In 2013 she won the international award for her work in the area of First-Time Voters’ education. She has provided international assistance to a number of countries in the area of electoral training organization and the creation of electoral training centres.

He graduated from the Faculty of Law at Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski "in Sofia, in 1992. In 2005 he obtained a Master's degree in Accounting and Control from the University of National and World Economy, Sofia. In 2010 he became a PhD in International Private Law at the New Bulgarian University. In 1993, he began working as a freelance lawyer enrolled in the Sofia Bar Association.. Since 2006 he has been a mediator in civil and commercial disputes. From 2003 to 2012 he is a regular assistant in international private law at the New Bulgarian University, after which he was appointed chief assistant in the same discipline.
He is a lecturer on EU competition law and on the legal norm of foreign investment. He first joined the CEC in 2007 when the local elections were held. He participated in the CEC in the election for members of the National Assembly and the election for members of the European Parliament from the Republic of Bulgaria in 2009. From 2013 till now he is a CEC spokesman. He has participated in international observer missions in different countries.

She was born on May 2, 1969 in Moscow.

In 1992 she graduated from the M.V. Lomonosov Moscow State University with a degree in jurisprudence.

In 1992-1993 she was a leading specialist of the Constitutional Commission Registry, and then of the Constitutional legislation committee of the Supreme Soviet of the Russian Federation.

In 1993-2003 she was a legal executive, assistant head of department, head of the Legal Administration; from 2003 to March 2007 was deputy head of the Legal Department of the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation.

On March 12, 2007 she was appointed as a member of the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation by the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation.

On March 14, 2011 she was reappointed as a member of the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation by the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation.

In the CEC of Russia within the board of the years 2011-2016 she was responsible for such activities as synthesis and analysis of practice of holding elections and referendums in the Russian Federation, preparation of law enforcement improvement and development proposals and verification of the implementation of the measures aimed at bringing the legislation of the  territorial entities of the Russian Federation into compliance with the federal law

On February 10, 2016 she was reappointed as a member of the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation by the resolution of the Council of the Federation of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation.

On March 28, 2016 she was elected as the Secretary of the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation.

She is awarded with the Order of Amity, the medals of the Order of Merit for the Motherland of the I and II degrees, the Scroll of Honor and letter acknowledgement of the President of the Russian Federation, honorary badge of the Central Election Commission of Russia “For Merits in organizing the elections”.  

Augusta Featherston serves as the Youth Focal Point in the OSCE Office of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR). In this role Ms. Featherston develops and oversees ODIHR’s youth political participation portfolio, implementing activities designed to assist OSCE participating States meet their commitments in supporting the active participation of young people in promoting democracy, human rights, and fundamental freedoms. Prior to ODIHR, Ms. Featherston served as the technical lead on youth engagement at the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) advising on youth-specific program design, and other global youth initiatives. She also has extensive experience working with various youth-serving organizations supporting young people in underserved communities in the United States though innovative literacy, technology, and leadership development programs. Ms. Featherston holds an M.A. in international development from the Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver.

Irena Hadžiabdić has spent the past 19 years in the field of election management, first with the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), then as Executive Director of IFES in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). She was also the Executive Director of the Association of Election Officials in BiH (AEOBiH). In 2007, she was appointed by the BiH Parliamentary Assembly as a member of the BiH Central Election Commission (BiH CEC). On April 27, 2016 she was reappointed member of the BiH CEC after expiry of the seven-year mandate, and she is serving as the President of the BiH CEC since January 1, 2017.

She represented the BiH CEC at the Executive Board of the Association of European Election Officials (ACEEEO) and at the Oversight and Audit Committee of the Association of World Election Bodies (A-WEB). She is currently member of the Board of Directors of the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES). She has observed and assessed elections in 14 countries with OSCE’s Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, the International Republican Institute and the National Democratic Institute. In 2013, she received an International Electoral Award for outstanding achievements in election management.

Irena Hadžiabdić graduated from the Belgrade Faculty of Law. She holds a M.S. in European Union Policy, Law and Management from Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen and a Ph.D. in Juridical Science from the Faculty of Law in Zenica.

Ms. Berzina has been head of the Information Department of the CEC of Latvia since 2006, has been working for the CEC of Latvia since April 1998 as chairman’s assistant, press secretary and public relation manager. Ms. Berzina managed CEC public relation and voters’ education campaigns of six parliamentary elections, five local government elections, three European Parliament elections, eight referendums and several signature collection procedures. She has work experience in election administration, media relations, communication strategies, WEB content development, social media, special events management, training programmes for lower-level election commissions and youth. 

Ms. Berzina has observed elections and referendums in Croatia, Estonia, Georgia, Lithuania, Poland and United Kingdom, participated in international conferences and seminars as participant and speaker, has worked as communication expert at IPA 2010 Twinning Light Project “Strengthening the System of Supervision of Political Activities and Electoral Campaign Financing in the Republic of Croatia” in 2014 and participated in BRIDGE workshops in Hungary in 2011.

Ms. Berzina has the Master’s degree in communication science, and she is a member of the Associations of Public Relation Specialist of Latvia (LASAP) since 2005.

George (Gio) Kobakhidze is the Senior Operations and Civic Education Officer for the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), and has seven years of experience in the democracy and governance field, with postings in Washington, D.C., Tbilisi, Georgia, and Kyiv, Ukraine. In Georgia, Kobakhidze designed and managed IFES’ civic and voter education programming, which included support to civil society organizations working in this field, as well as the introduction of an interactive, university-level civic education course that is currently offered at the majority of accredited universities throughout the country.

Kobakhidze is currently stationed with IFES in Ukraine, where he oversees the implementation of multiple projects designed to support the consolidation of Ukrainian democracy through more participatory, transparent, and accountable electoral processes and institutions. Key areas of programming include: technical assistance and support to electoral management bodies, political finance regulators, civil society, media, and academic institutions; fostering dialogue on electoral and political finance reform and implementation; enhancing inclusion in the electoral process for underrepresented and disenfranchised populations; and supporting informed citizen participation through and in between election cycles through civic and voter education. Presently, Kobakhidze is spearheading an initiative to introduce a university-level civic education course in Ukraine’s institutions of higher education; this initiative is part of an effort to strengthen the knowledge, skills, and dispositions that are associated with students’ effective democratic citizenship throughout the country. A native English spea

Mr. Dmitry Gladey graduated from V. I. Ulyanov (Lenin) Leningrad Electrotechnical Institute majoring in Electronic Equipment. In 1972-1985 worked in Komsomol and Communist Party chapters of Leningrad. In 1985-1992 performed teaching and administrative functions in St. Petersburg State University. In 1992-2005 worked as business manager in St. Petersburg. In 2005 Mr. Gladey took office and currently remains Deputy Head of IPA CIS Council Secretariat – Director of International Institute for the Monitoring of Democratic Development, Parliamentarism and Suffrage Protection of Citizens of IPA CIS Member Nations.

Leonardo Valdés was appointed President Councilor of the Federal Electoral Institute of Mexico (IFE) in February 2008. A PhD in Social Sciences with a specialization in Sociology from the Center for Sociological Studies of El Colegio de México. He was member of a Commission of Experts appointed by the General Council of the IFE in 1998 to study the options for the voting from abroad program. From 1999 to 2005 he served as Electoral Councilor for the Electoral Institute of Mexico City. He was also President of the Directive Board of the Mexican Association for Electoral Studies (SOMEE for its acronym in Spanish). He was a full-time professor in the Autonomous Metropolitan University in Mexico City, where he taught undergraduate courses on Political Science, graduate courses on Social Studies, and a diploma course on Electoral Studies. His publications include collective books on political and electoral topics. Some of his essays have been published in the United States, Brazil, Uruguay and Great Britain. He has been a member of the Researchers National System since 1993. He was professor at the Faculty of Law and Public Administration at the University of Guanajuato until January 2008.

Lawyer of Sofia Bar Association since 1980.

Member of the Council of Sofia Bar Association between 1983 and 1989; member of the Supreme Bar Council between 2005 and 2013; member of Sofia Municipal Council between 1991 and 2000.

Member of the Central Election Commission in 2001 for the presidential elections; in 2003 and 2007 – member of CEC for the local elections for members of municipal councils and mayors; 2005 and 2009 – member of CEC for the parliamentary elections; between 2001 and 2014, and since 2014 – member of the Central Election Commission as a permanent body.

Her electoral experience includes drafting of key decisions on the application of the Electoral Code, methodological instructive regulations for all election commissions as the master guide for elections, national and local referendums, decisions for application of the norms of existing electoral laws and the Electoral Code, for the training of members of all election and tabulation commissions.

Dan Malinovich is an Electoral Assistance Specialist in the UNDP’s Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS) based in Brussels, serving as one of the two UNDP representatives on the EC-UNDP Joint Task Force on Electoral Assistance (JTF). He provides day-to-day support to the electoral projects world-wide and frequently participates in missions to assess the needs, formulate new projects and support the implementation of activities.

Prior to joining the UNDP Brussels office, he designed and managed projects promoting democratic governance in around 20 countries across Europe, Asia, Africa and Oceania.

Most recently he was based in the Maldives, where he managed a project supporting civil society and independent commissions.

From 2010 to 2012 he served as a Chief Technical Advisor for UNDP Kyrgyzstan providing support in organizing elections and a referendum after the overthrow of the president and inter-ethnic violence that followed.

From 2004 to 2009 he was based in Central Asia managing long and short-term project in Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan particularly focusing on electoral assistance, legislative reform and civic education.

He was on the team organizing out-of-country elections in Afghanistan and also observed elections with OSCE-ODIHR in Macedonia, Georgia and the Netherlands.

In addition to native fluency in English and Serbo-Croatian, he speaks French and Russian. He holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Indiana University (Bloomington, Indiana, USA) and a master’s degree in international law (LL.M.) from the University of Kent-Brussels School of International Studies

Mr. Paul DeGregorio served as commissioner of the United States Election Assistance Commission (EAC) from 2003-2007. During his tenure he served as chairman of the EAC and oversaw federal election reform, such as the implementation of the Help America Vote Act and the establishment of the first federal certification of voting systems and best practices in elections clearinghouse.  Prior to the EAC, Mr. DeGregorio was Executive Vice President of the International Foundation for Election Systems (IFES) and he also was senior election adviser for IFES in many countries. He focused on new voting technologies and automation for out of country voters and voters with disabilities as Chief of Elections of Everyone Counts, Inc. Mr. DeGregorio has over 30 years of election experience and was Director of Elections for St. Louis County, Missouri, USA. He has provided technical assistance and has observed elections in more than 35 countries, including serving as Head of Mission for several OSCE/ODHIR election assessment missions and participating in election observation projects for AWEB and other organizations. Mr. DeGregorio is Senior Advisor to the Association of World Election Bodies and a Senior Fellow for the Democracy Fund. He is frequent lecturer and has authored numerous publications on elections, including serving on the Scientific Board of the Electoral Expert Review and Kids Voting. He has received numerous awards, including the Freedom Award from the National Association of Secretaries of State, and was appointed a lifetime member of the Association of European Election Officials (ACEEEO) and the International Association of Government Officials (iGO). A graduate of the University of Missouri with a B.A. in Political Science, Mr. DeGregorio was honored by his alma mater with the Distinguished Alumni Award.

Mariya Musorlieva has a degree from the Faculty of Law of Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”, as well as in Theory and History of Art at the Faculty of History of the same University. She has been a member of the Sofia Bar Association since 1992 to date. She is a member of the Managing board of the Association of German-speaking Lawyers in Bulgaria. She has been a member for two terms of the Lawyers Council of Republic of Bulgaria – Higher Disciplinary Court. She has a specialization in Civil Law in Germany, as well as a specialization in political medication. She was a Secretary in Chief of the Bulgarian League of Human Rights Protection, accredited through its International Federation with the UN and the Council of Europe. Deputy-Chair of the Central Election Commission for two subsequent terms, from 2011-2014 and from 2014 to date. International monitor at many elections held in Europe and Asia.

Hisham Kuhail is an architect who obtained his Bachelor of degree in Architecture from Alexandria University in Egypt in 1977 and his Master of philosophy degree from the University of Newcastle in the UK in 1986. Previously held the positions of Dean of Palestine Polytechnic University and Assistant undersecretary at the Ministry of Education and Higher Education from 1994 to 2006. Assumed CEO position at the CEC's in August 2006. Very active in promoting and sharing CEC's experience regionally and internationally. Currently a member of the Executive Board of the Organisation of Arab Electoral Management Bodies (Arab EMBs).

Electoral expert, democracy, human rights and governance professional with 8 years of experience in foreign relations, public policy, public relations and election administration.  Held position of Head of the Foreign Relations Department of the Central Electoral Commission of Armenia  for more than 8 years.

Design and deliver trainings for over 5,000 CSO members and poll workers to improve the administration of elections, strengthen civil society, and increase transparency and government accountability.

International observer for OSCE/ODIHR and other international observation missions in Europe and Eurasia.

Trainer of the Qualification Improvement and Research Activities Department at State Public Administration Academy of the RA.

PHD student in Public Policy at State Public Administration Academy of Armenia.

19 may 1971

Married, 2 children

Studies:

1994 Technical University of Moldova, Urbanism and Architecture

1999 Master's Academy of Public Administration

2007 Ph.D. in political science

2008 State University of Moldova, licensed the low

Professional experience:

from 1999, university lecturer

from 2003, member of the Central Election Commission of Moldova

2005 - 2011 the Secretary of CEC

from 2006, Member of Coordination Committee of the joint European Commission and the Council of Europe to combat corruption

from 2007 - Currently, member of Coordination Committee Project of the Government of the Republic of Moldova and UNDP 'Building Electronic Governance in Moldova'

2011 - 2016 President of Central Electoral Commission of Republic of Moldova

from January 2017, Government, Office of Prime Minister, Head of the Center for Reform Implementation

Born on 18 June 1969 in the city of Aktobe.

In 1991 he graduated from Aktobe Pedagogical Institute named after K. Zhubanov.

Work experience:

1991-2004 - chemistry and biology teacher, deputy director of the secondary school No. of Aktobe city, deputy head of the department for organizational and personnel work, the assistant to akim of Aktobe city, deputy chief of the department for administrative and economic activity and improvement of the Aktobe ferroalloy plant;

08.2004-04.2008 – assistant to Akim of Aktobe oblast;

04.2008-01.2009 - head of internal policy department of Aktobe oblast;

01.2009-24.08.2015 - Chief of Staff of Akim of Aktobe oblast;

24.08.2015-09.2016 - State Inspector of the Department for state control and organizational-territorial operation of the Administration of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan;

By the Decree of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan of 30 September

2016 has been appointed as a member of the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Marital status: married, two children.

Awards: Order "Kurmet" (2011).

Samuel Jones is a Programme Officer with International IDEA’s Political Parties, Representation and Participation Programme and works primarily on the topic of money in politics. Samuel has written and presented extensively on the topic of money in politics and is the author of Digital Solutions for Political Finance Reporting and Disclosure: A Practical Guide. He is also the co-editor of International IDEA’s Funding of Political Parties and Election Campaigns: A Handbook on Political Finance. Samuel’s in-country experience working on political finance includes time spent in Kyrgyzstan, Tunisia, Nepal, Georgia, Moldova, Albania and India, where he drafted the New Delhi Declaration on Political Finance Regulation in South Asia. Previously, Samuel worked with International IDEA’s Democracy and Development Programme on projects related to programmatic political parties and democratic accountability. He has also worked with ACE: The Electoral Knowledge Network.

Prior to International IDEA, Samuel worked for a Swedish political party foundation. He also has field experience from Nepal and Palestine, where he worked for The Carter Center and the World Council of Churches, respectively. He holds a Masters degree in International Relations from the University of Warwick and a Bachelors degree in History from the University of Nottingham, both in the UK.

Pierre Garrone is head of the Division of elections and political parties at the secretariat of the Venice Commission (Council of Europe), PhD (Geneva University), Master of Advanced European Studies (College of Europe), avocat (Switzerland). He was inter alia strongly involved in the drafting of two reference documents of the Council of Europe elaborated by the Venice Commission: the Code of Good Practice in Electoral Matters and the Rule of Law Checklist. His publications address in particular the following issues: the Venice Commission; law of elections and political parties; comparative and Swiss constitutional law; European Union law – the freedoms of the European single market.

Dr. Beata Martin-Rozumiłowicz is currently the Director for Europe and Eurasia at the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES). Before starting in February 2016, she headed the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe’s Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (OSCE/ODHIR) Election Department in Warsaw, Poland since 2011 and previously served as its Deputy from 2009 to 2011.

From 2005 to 2009, she worked on dozens of OSCE/ODIHR election observation missions across the 57 OSCE participating states as Deputy Head of Mission or as Political Analyst, including in Albania, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Montenegro, the Russian Federation, and Ukraine.

In 2005, she served as Election Adviser to the OSCE Centre in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan and from 2003 to 2005 was Political/Media Officer at the OSCE Centre in Almaty, Kazakhstan. From 2000 to 2002, Beata acted as Human Dimension Officer at the OSCE’s Advisory and Monitoring Group in Minsk, Belarus. She has also previously consulted for IFES in Armenia and Kyrgyzstan on various aspects of electoral reform. During the course of her work and travels, Beata has visited more than 75 countries around the world.

Beata holds a D.Phil. (Ph.D.) and M.Phil. (Masters) in politics from the University of Oxford, United Kingdom and a B.A. in political science from Rutgers College (Phi Beta Kappa). She has specialized in political party and electoral development in post-communist countries, Latin American transitions, and political theory.

From 1999-2000, she was research fellow for Oxford’s Programme in Comparative Media Law and Policy, publishing a book on media law reform in transitional democracies. She has also published various articles on political party and electoral development, election observation, media freedom, and political party and campaign finance issues.

Ms. Matjošaitytė has been a Chairwoman of the Central Electoral Commission of the Republic of Lithuania since June 2017. Before that she was Deputy Chair since 2013 and served as a Member of the Commission since 2012. Since February 2016, Ms. Matjošaitytė vorks also as a Lecturer at Mykolas Romeris University and teaches Constitutional law. She has been Lawyer since 2007.

19 may 1971

Married, 2 children

Studies:

1994 Technical University of Moldova, Urbanism and Architecture

1999 Master's Academy of Public Administration

2007 Ph.D. in political science

2008 State University of Moldova, licensed the low

Professional experience:

from 1999, university lecturer

from 2003, member of the Central Election Commission of Moldova

2005 - 2011 the Secretary of CEC

from 2006, Member of Coordination Committee of the joint European Commission and the Council of Europe to combat corruption

from 2007 - Currently, member of Coordination Committee Project of the Government of the Republic of Moldova and UNDP 'Building Electronic Governance in Moldova'

2011 - 2016 President of Central Electoral Commission of Republic of Moldova

from January 2017, Government, Office of Prime Minister, Head of the Center for Reform Implementation

She was born on September 12, 1968 in the village of Luxemburg, Issyk-Ata rayon of the Chui oblast. In 1990 she graduated from the Department of History of the Kyrgyz National University. In 2004 she graduated from the Law Faculty of the Kyrgyz National University, in the same year she graduated from the Diplomatic Academy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic.

Work experience:

1992-1994 - Post-graduate student of the Institute of Politics and Economics of the National Academy of Sciences of the Kyrgyz Republic.

1997-2004 - Head of the Expert Group, Head of the Department of the Committee on International and Inter-Parliamentary Relations of the Jogorku Kenesh of the Kyrgyz Republic.

2006-2007 - Head of the International Relations and Extradition Division of the Prosecutor General's Office of the Kyrgyz Republic.

2010-2012 - Head of the Group for Coordination of Legislative Activities of the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic.

2012 - 2015 - Deputy Head of the Department of Legal Support of the Office of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic.

Zsolt Szolnoki currently serves as Secretary General for the Association of the European Election Officials on a voluntarily basis, providing leadership to the Secretariat’s work. He manages the annual conferences, supervises the projects’ preparations, the agendas for the Executive Board and the General Assembly meetings. His areas of expertise include planning for the elections, e-voting, election observations and supervisions, project management and design. He started to work for the ACEEEO in 1995, when he organized the annual conference in Siófok, Hungary. Since this year, he organized and attended all ACEEEO annual conference and Executive Board meeting. At the end of the nineties, he prepared several large observation missions to the Balkan region. In 2000, he worked for the OSCE Mission to Kosovo providing expertise for the preparatory work of the first election in Kosovo. He represented the ACEEEO as an international expert in many conferences and seminars. In his professional capacity between 1993 and 2002 he worked for the Hungarian National Election Office as the Deputy Head of the Election Department. From 2002 to 2005 he served as Head of IT department in the Ministry of Interior. From 2006 till November 2010 he worked for the European Commission as a Seconded National Expert on the area of Home Affairs.  In 2011 he was the Chairman of a working group in the Hungarian EU Presidency team. Currently he is a high counselor in the Ministry of Interior of Hungary. He holds a B.A in Public Administration and completed a post graduate course in Business Management.

Augusta Featherston serves as the Youth Focal Point in the OSCE Office of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR). In this role Ms. Featherston develops and oversees ODIHR’s youth political participation portfolio, implementing activities designed to assist OSCE participating States meet their commitments in supporting the active participation of young people in promoting democracy, human rights, and fundamental freedoms. Prior to ODIHR, Ms. Featherston served as the technical lead on youth engagement at the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) advising on youth-specific program design, and other global youth initiatives. She also has extensive experience working with various youth-serving organizations supporting young people in underserved communities in the United States though innovative literacy, technology, and leadership development programs. Ms. Featherston holds an M.A. in international development from the Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver.

Leonardo Valdés was appointed President Councilor of the Federal Electoral Institute of Mexico (IFE) in February 2008. A PhD in Social Sciences with a specialization in Sociology from the Center for Sociological Studies of El Colegio de México. He was member of a Commission of Experts appointed by the General Council of the IFE in 1998 to study the options for the voting from abroad program. From 1999 to 2005 he served as Electoral Councilor for the Electoral Institute of Mexico City. He was also President of the Directive Board of the Mexican Association for Electoral Studies (SOMEE for its acronym in Spanish). He was a full-time professor in the Autonomous Metropolitan University in Mexico City, where he taught undergraduate courses on Political Science, graduate courses on Social Studies, and a diploma course on Electoral Studies. His publications include collective books on political and electoral topics. Some of his essays have been published in the United States, Brazil, Uruguay and Great Britain. He has been a member of the Researchers National System since 1993. He was professor at the Faculty of Law and Public Administration at the University of Guanajuato until January 2008.

Mr. Paul DeGregorio served as commissioner of the United States Election Assistance Commission (EAC) from 2003-2007. During his tenure he served as chairman of the EAC and oversaw federal election reform, such as the implementation of the Help America Vote Act and the establishment of the first federal certification of voting systems and best practices in elections clearinghouse.  Prior to the EAC, Mr. DeGregorio was Executive Vice President of the International Foundation for Election Systems (IFES) and he also was senior election adviser for IFES in many countries. He focused on new voting technologies and automation for out of country voters and voters with disabilities as Chief of Elections of Everyone Counts, Inc. Mr. DeGregorio has over 30 years of election experience and was Director of Elections for St. Louis County, Missouri, USA. He has provided technical assistance and has observed elections in more than 35 countries, including serving as Head of Mission for several OSCE/ODHIR election assessment missions and participating in election observation projects for AWEB and other organizations. Mr. DeGregorio is Senior Advisor to the Association of World Election Bodies and a Senior Fellow for the Democracy Fund. He is frequent lecturer and has authored numerous publications on elections, including serving on the Scientific Board of the Electoral Expert Review and Kids Voting. He has received numerous awards, including the Freedom Award from the National Association of Secretaries of State, and was appointed a lifetime member of the Association of European Election Officials (ACEEEO) and the International Association of Government Officials (iGO). A graduate of the University of Missouri with a B.A. in Political Science, Mr. DeGregorio was honored by his alma mater with the Distinguished Alumni Award.

19 may 1971

Married, 2 children

Studies:

1994 Technical University of Moldova, Urbanism and Architecture

1999 Master's Academy of Public Administration

2007 Ph.D. in political science

2008 State University of Moldova, licensed the low

Professional experience:

from 1999, university lecturer

from 2003, member of the Central Election Commission of Moldova

2005 - 2011 the Secretary of CEC

from 2006, Member of Coordination Committee of the joint European Commission and the Council of Europe to combat corruption

from 2007 - Currently, member of Coordination Committee Project of the Government of the Republic of Moldova and UNDP 'Building Electronic Governance in Moldova'

2011 - 2016 President of Central Electoral Commission of Republic of Moldova

from January 2017, Government, Office of Prime Minister, Head of the Center for Reform Implementation

Mrs. Robinson has been a Chair of the Central Election Commission (CEC) since March 2014. Before that she was Executive Director of the Institute of Modern Politics – a non-profit organization, which works in the field of monitoring the legislation according to the principles of transparency, publicity, accountability and civil participation in decision making. She was an advisor to the Minister of Emergency Situations; a lawyer; a member of the CEC (2005). Her professional experience includes advising NGOs working in the field of human rights protection and good governance. Mrs. Robinson is an author of analyzes and proposals for new/ amendments of the electoral legislation. She participated in Civil Councils to the Parliament Committees for the preparation of the Election Code now in force; in round tables and discussions on electoral matters; in preparation of statements on conducting of the presidential elections 2011 for Constitutional Court cases and others. At present Mrs. Robinson is a President of the Association of European Election Officials (ACEEEO).